MGM Plans African Samurai Film “Yasuke”

MGM is reportedly planning the action film “Yasuke,” a true story-inspired tale about the only recorded African samurai in feudal Japan.

A native of Portuguese Mozambique, Yasuke was taken captive and brought to 16th-century Japan as a slave to Jesuit missionaries. The first black man to set foot in Japan, his arrival arouses the interest of ruthless warlord Oda Nobunaga who seeks to unite the fractured country under his banner.

The film will focus on the complex relationship between the two men as Yasuke earns Nobunaga’s friendship, respect, and ultimately the title of samurai.

Stuart C. Paul, who recently sold the pitch “Scorpion” to STX, penned the script while Lloyd Braun and Andrew Mittman are producing.